Harness-line holder.



A. UNDSTROM. HARNESS UN APPLICATION FILED FEB. 26, 1917.

E HOLDER,

Patented 9015. 23, 191-7.

nron .Auens'r m vnsrnoivnor cnn rnavrntn, scorn DAKOTA.

HARNESS-LINE I-IOLDER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 23, 1917.

I Application filed February 26, 1917. Serial No. 150,897.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, AUcUsT LINDSTROM, a citizen of the United States, residing at Center-ville, in the county of Turner and State of South Dakota, have invented a new and useful Harness-Line Holder, of which the following is a specification. I My invention relates to improvements i harness for horses and other draft animals, and the main object is to provide the back pad of a harness with a handy device for holding the linesof-the'harness when they are not in use. Another object is to make such devicere'adily applicable as anattachment also to harness already manufactured or even in use. v

In the accompanying drawing: Figure l is a rear elevation of a back-pad with my line holder mounted on it.

larged and slightly modified portion of Fig. 1 with the regular metallic parts of the back pad partly'in section. Fig. t is a view in the direction of the arrows A. in Figs. 2 and 3, ofthe attachmentonly.

Referring to the drawing by reference numerals, 1 designates an ordinary back with a downwardstud9 adapted to engage in apertures inthe' belly bandsl'O and shaft supporting straps 11, through which are also passed the screws 1 that extend down through apertures in bridge bars 12. The upper end of each terret plate is formed into a hinge member 13, which engages a hinge member 14, of the "metal arch '15, onwhich device I prefer to arrange the bracket in a the check rein hook 16 is secured. The plate 5 is also formed with a bayonet point 17,

which is passed down through apertures 18,

19 in the parts 15 and 2 respectively, (see Fig. 3) and under part 2, whereupon the plate 5 is further secured by the terret 6 and the nut 8. I a

From this description it will be seen that the terret plate 5 is detachable by merely removing the terret and raising the plate with its lower end until the bayonet end 17 will be disengaged and removed from the other parts. Of this detachable character Fig- '2 is a top view of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is an enof the terret. plate I take advantage by mounting upon said plate 5 my line holder, 7

which will now be described.

Referring to Fig. 3 where the terret is preferably of the quadrangular type to give more room for the line holder. the latter the device requires a new terretplatetobe cast'with it and applied to new harness, or the plate may be exchanged for the common terret plate of a harness already manufactured or in use.

In either of such cases the plate 5 may or may not have the extension 5 shown in F igs. 3 and 1,- for the screw t. But where the line holder is 'secured upon an old or existing common plate 5, the perforated extension 5* becomes necessary or at least very desirable and then forms a part of a special plate 29. 1 A

' The latter form is shown in Figs. 1 and 2, where the bracket'20 is formed with a special foot or base 29, which is set upon the plate 5 and may be secured theretoby a rivet 30 and be drawn down tight by the screw 1, upon interposed leather washers 31 to supper-tit upon the leather straps lland 10. The bracket proper may also he se cured to the terret by'solder 32 or by having aflat finger'33'inserted through a slitmade in the terret, and thenclenclied within'the terret, as indicated by 83, in Fig.1. 'The foot plate 29-may also have a notch 29* (in Fig. l) fitting the'adjacent side of the colla r 6? of'the'te'rreti In either form of the more or less oblique position relative to the transverse direction of the back pad upon the horse. This to give better access to the use and operation of the device, which use is simply as follows:

For a single harness the device is usually placed upon the left side of the harness as shown, and for a double harness, the right side of the right hand harness is provided with a similar device, only so much difierent from the one shown that when it is put in place the bracket 20 must be inelinedforwardly with its outer edge about as inclicated by the line b-b in F 1g. 2, and have its concaved side rearwardly. It will thus require reversely shaped patterns for the right and left brackets but the spring and the lever 2st and arms 25 are the same form for both sides.

When the horse or horses are unhitched for rest or to be fed, or whenever it is desired to set the driving lines free from the vehicle, they are simply doubled up in a few coils so they cannot reach the ground and are placed in the clasp formed by the bracket 20 and the arm 25 as a pair of jaws, When the reins are to be inserted or removed, said jaws are temporarily forced open by one of the operators hands, placed with the palm upon the top of the bracket and engaging with the fingers over the top of the lever 2a to close ittoward the bracket until the lines are put in place by the other hand, whereupon the lever is released so the spring 27-28 can act and close the arm until its finger 26 may reach the bracket and the lines are firmly gripped between the arm and the grooved.

or concaved and perforated bracket.

If there is a hitching strap orother strap to be supported, the same may also be placed in the clasp either above the lines or better below them so that if the horse starts to walk away the lines may in an instant be removed from the clasp and ready for service. The advantages 0]": this device can be readily understood when compared to earlier devices, the use of which requires the idle reins to be supported by coiling and inserting them into the terret and sometimes even tying them thereto so they may not slip accidentally away from the terret or from some other part of the harness to which they are also sometimes vtied.

lVhat I claim is: V I V 1. The combination with a plate, of a spring-closed clasp mounted on said plate for holding lines, reins and the like parts of the harness in idle position; said clasp comprising an upstanding bracket with an aperture in it and lugs at its base, a pivot in the lugs, a lever mounted to swing on the pivot and having two arms, one of which is arranged to clamp the lines against the adjacent side of the bracket, the other one extending through the aperture in the bracket and serving as a finger catch for operating the arm, and a spring acting on the lever to close the arm against the bracket; said spring being mounted on the pivot, between the supporting lugs and the said lever.

2. The combination with a plate, of a spring-closed clasp'mounted on saidplate for holding lines, reins and the like parts of the harness in idle position; said clasp comprising an upstanding bracket with an aperture in it and lugs at its base, a pivot in thelugs, a lever mounted to swing on the pivot and having two arms, one of which is arranged to clamp, the lines against the adjacent side of the bracket, the other: one extending through the aperture in, the bracket and serving as a finger catch for operating the arm, and aspring acting on the lever to close the arm against the bracket; said bracket having its body grooved at the side adjacent to the springclosed arm. V

3. The combination with a plate adapted to be attached to a back pad, of a springclosed clasp mounted on said plate for bold ing lines, reins and the like partsof the harness in idle position, said clasp comprising an upstanding bracket with an aperture in it and lugs at its base, a pivot in the lugs, a lever mounted to swing on the pivot and having two arms, one of which is arranged to clamp the lines against the adjacent side of the bracket, the other one extending through the aperture in the bracket and serving as a finger catchfor operating the arm, and a springacting on the lever to close the arm against thebracket, the body of saidbracket beingof approximately fiat form and arranged on the said pad with its outer edge fartherforward than the inner edge, to make it more convenient to operate and use the device.

In testimonywhereot I afiix'my signature.

aneosr LINnsTRoM;

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing-the Commissioner of Patents.

Washington, BE. 

